Hungarian Camerawoman Apologizes for Kicking, Tripping Refugees
She wrote an open letter saying she "panicked."
— -- The Hungarian camerawoman who was caught on video kicking and tripping refugees has written an open letter apologizing for her "panicked" actions.
Petra Laszlo, who has since been fired from her job and questioned by police, was filming as people broke away from a police cordon in Hungary.
"I panicked. I'm not a heartless, child-kicking racist camera-person," she wrote in her letter published in Hungarian newspaper Magyar Nemzet.
"As I watch the footage now, it's like I'm not watching myself. I honestly regret what I have done and take responsibility for it," she wrote.
She was fired from N1TV, a far right-leaning Hungarian Internet news channel, after release of the footage showing her treatment of refugees and migrants.
Laszlo was questioned by police for disorderly conduct and was released, but the investigation is ongoing, according to The Associated Press.
"I was afraid as they were rushing toward me and then something snapped in my head. As I had my camera in my hand I couldn't see who was coming at me, my only thought was that I was going to be attacked, and that I had to defend myself," she wrote of the incident that took place near the Serbian border Tuesday.
"It's not easy to make a good decision when you're in a panic.
"I'm just a woman, now unemployed mother of small children, who made a bad decision in a panic situation," she added.